Dunes Sunset with Crestone Peaks

Sunset at Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, CO reveals the natural order of things. At the bottom of the image is the verdant San Luis Valley. Hidden below that, extending 10,000 feet deep is the aquifer that brings life to the surrounding area. Behind the valley floor are the beautiful sand formations of Great Sand Dunes National Park. The most prominent one in the image is Star Dune, the tallest dune in North America. Further back is a slope that leads up to the nearest peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains (off the image to the right). Farther back is the jagged line of 14,294' Crestone Peak's twin summits, at one time considered unclimbable. Behind the peaks are wind-whipped clouds, representing that invisible companion that constantly scrubs the sand below of all evidence of human trespass. Forming the final backdrop is a dramatic layering of high, dark clouds bringing new rain to the mountains, from where it will eventually flow to the aquifer, bringing the remarkable sand with it. Imaged August 2006.

Comments

Pkfrancev--Thanks! I took the image a number of times (I do love digital!), including several horizontals. But I too felt that the horizontal division was better emphasized in this one. I almost titled it "Layers on Layers", but decided against it since that doesn't help anyone using SP's search engine if they're interested in images of the dunes.

upside down view of Mt. Blanc. There are lots of good pix of the top of Mt. Blanc with sand dune effects in the snow drifts. In such pictures, the Crestones are replaced by the Aiguilles but they are below the summit of Mt. Blanc.

Thanks, BergClmbr7! Yeah, I had a really tough time climbing High Dune (8691') on day 2 of our trip, so I was a bit worried about attempting a 14'er on day 7. But Green Mountain (8563') went well on day 6, so I was pretty confident that I had adapted to the altitude and could make the 14'er. It was still tough for me (Curtis beat me by 30 minutes!), but I have the satisfaction of knowing I did it. Ironically, my opinion is that High Dune was the toughest climb of the three! Curtis even said it was as tough (for him) as Philmont's Baldy Mountain (12,441') last year.--mark d

Thanks, Rasgoat! Even as I was shooting this series of shots I felt it was going to be a pretty special image. Heh-heh: I remember even thinking, "Boy, Romek is going to want this in 'Mosaics in Mountains'".--mark d.

Great! By the way, I do have an album on SP, "Why Do You Do It?". You're welcome to insert one of your images that tells that story, or to post a comment about why, if you'd like! Thanks for looking at my image--mark d.